He stared at the rooftop of the obnoxiously orange building and looked through the rain as the figures on top stood and approached the edge. The fireworks had stopped, signaling the approaching memorial. He had left the crowded interior of the Leaky Cauldron and stood on the front steps to get a better view. He had heard about it last year, the fallen memorial, and refused to come from the manor. A night of remembrance to heal, that's what the papers had called it. Potter was leading the remembrance; it would be a celebration he wasn't going to receive a personal invite too. From anyone in the wizarding world.
It wasn't until the Daily Prophet showed them raising their wands, she had looked different but the headline had given her away. The Trio of survivors stood front and center, kicking off the memorial. She had lost the softness to her, it was replaced with stone. He could see that from the way she moved, the Prophet showed her mask like face hap-hazardly raising her wand to the sky. He realized the significance of the night then, anything that could bring the enigma that was Hermione Granger into the limelight had to be important. She hadn't healed. He could see it in her eyes, the small, frail way she held herself told him that. The girl he had left at the castle that night was gone. In her place was someone he wouldn't have recognized had he ran into her on the streets. He had folded the picture up and stuck it in the book he was reading at the time.
There had been rumors, after the war, that the golden trio had their own rough patches, their own struggles healing. Even in the hell of Azkaban he heard the whispers. She had refused to attend the trials, had refused to attend the celebrations, had refused the spotlight that they so quickly tried to force on her.
He watched from under the awning to the Leaky Cauldron as the night sky turned gold and raised his drink to the sky. It would have to do, he wouldn't let off a light, those that he cared about had others doing so in their honor, those more worthy than he ever would be. Those he had lost would be shammed by his light anyways, who had he really lost? Bellatrix? He snorted into his drink and mockingly raised it to the sky again. He watched as one by one they patted each other on the back and hugged. He watched as she lowered her head and turned away from the edge. Alone.
He shook his head and sipped on his drink as those in the building behind him began to cheer and sing their songs. He raised his hood and lowered his head as the doors around him opened and others came back out to the streets as the rain stopped. This was the last place he should be on a night such as this. He quietly sipped and observed as the doors to the joke shop shot open and she fled into the crowd. Potter yelling at her retreating figure, words he couldn't make out as the crowd cheered on their hero. He raised his glass to her retreating figure and downed the last drop before turning to walk the other way. He had miss judged his step and tumbled into a man that had their back turned.
"Sorry" he mumbled turning quickly away to continue down the path. He needed to get away from here, back to the solitude of the Manor, he needed to check on her and then get ready for the week. The small ministry job he had managed to snag had left him with hours of work and mediocre pay. Kept him away from the eyes of the public and that was good enough for him.
He could hear the heavy, clumsy footsteps follow him into the night. The tension in his shoulders doubled as he turned down an alley in order to get out of the path. If he could just disappear this wouldn't be a problem. Since the war, there had been apparition points place in Diagon Alley, to insure they knew who was coming in and out. Something that was great to law abiding citizens, those that wouldn't need to escape quickly. He sighed when he approached the dead end, he had turned the wrong way, he mentally cursed himself and lowered his hood turning to face the heavy footed man coming down the alley at him. The same man he had bumped into leaving approached him now, red faced and angry. They always looked angry. He could feel his shoulders tense and tried to unclench his jaw as the man screamed his name.
"You're awfully stupid coming out here tonight." He rolled his eyes and walked closer, as the man quickly approached forcefully knocking his shoulder.
"I'm just trying to get back home. That's it." He said raising his arms, he made to walk away as the wizard knocked into him again. He balled his hands into a fist and relaxed them again. He looked at the man, looked at the sweat beads that fell from his hair line as his face continued to build in color, he was a stranger, no one that would mean anything to him if he was simply gone.
He shook his head, clearing the thoughts as his hands relaxed. The man staggered around, and Draco snorted, he was a drink to far was all. "I think we all just need to get back home." He raised his hands higher, showing them empty, as the man reached for his wand and aimed it in his direction. "You don't want to do this." He looked into the man's eyes, relaxing his mind, looking for a way in. If he couldn't persuade him to leave vocally, maybe he could mentally.
"You shouldn't have been allowed to live after what you did. You and your family are a scab to wizard kind and should've been executed like the rest of them." Draco clinched his teeth and lowered his hands to his hip. He felt his wand, his fingers wrapped around it as the man pushed into him one last time. He jerked it out of its keep but the man rushed him then, the full force of his body hit him and knocked him off balance and onto the wet ground below. He felt the fist make contact with his side and grunted before regaining his composure, he pushed up and over spinning them, pinning the man to the ground and landing a blow to his face. The spray of blood was warm on his knuckles as they made contact a second time. He pushed off of him then and the man groaned grabbing onto his nose.
Draco felt the blood drain from his face as he took in the crimson splatters on his robes. He scrambled along the ground, grabbing his wand and running from the alley way. He pulled his hood back over his head and turned back towards the crowd. If he could blend in, he would be able to get to the apparition point and make it back home without incident. He slowly pushed past the bodies to the thickest part of the group.
A.N. Wanted to post another chapter this weekend. I will try to stick to a Thursday release schedule from here on. For those who know me, try is a very key word there.
Thank you all and let me know what you're thoughts are!